Christmas and New Years

I apologise for my absence, it has been a long time since I updated my blog, I’ve been busy writing essays, getting ready for Christmas and subsequently gaining at least 3 stones.

I handed the second essay out of 4 on the 18^th and was so pleased to be free from studying over the holidays, with exams in April I chose to forego revision (we will see if that was a wise decision in spring). Despite the ever-malevolent fiend known as procrastination I managed to submit on time. Two weeks prior we received our results for our first essay, I got a merit (Yay!), I don’t hold out too much hope getting any higher with this essay as I fell victim to the aforementioned menace, but if I manage to maintain my grade then it will be easier to improve my overall grade in the new year.

Christmas was such a fantastic time! I absolutely love everything to do with Christmas. The songs, the decorations, the warm tingly feeling of contentment and joy… Bliss. My brother came back from Boston early December and our cousin also came down to us on Christmas Eve to spend his holiday with us, so it was a full and lively house. I made Christmas dinner for a grand total of eight people, which was not as bad as previous years and even had help from my younger brothers (an true Christmas miracle!!). Well, after a few years’ practices things finally seemed to come together without a hitch.

Things have been silent on the GradMed side, only communication has been from Warwick to say that applicants have gone up by 30%, because of this, the selectors need more time to review the applications and we will receive offers and rejections in early January. The waiting was agonising, still is, but I have allowed myself the holidays to rest my frayed nerves and enjoy the festivities.

As we come to the end of 2013, I find myself in a state of reflection. This year has been a very good year, I quit my job (such a good thing, for soo many reasons), passed my driving test, my brother left the country (a bit sad), I went after him, started my MSc (By far the best thing to happen in 2013) and applied for medical school (prayerfully for the last time). I have made it through this year becoming even more optimistic and enthused for the future than ever before. Here’s hoping 2014 will be even better!

Fancy dinners and impending stress

Last Saturday night was amazing. As fundraisers go, it was quite a formal bash: 3 course meal, flowing wine, gorgeous dresses and sharp suits. The Hilton was absolutely lovely and the turn out was good and it was quite a mixed bag of people. The highlight of the whole night had to be the dance performance and subsequent dancing. It was so good to see everyone getting involve, shaking their tail-features, especially the President of the Oral and Maxillofacial Association doing the Azonto! All in all a fantastic night out! 

Don't worry if you couldn't make it, there are always opportunities to donate :) 

The end of last week also marked the midway point of the second module of my MSc. The time has just flown by! I feel like we just began the course yesterday. Alas we are very nearly half way through the entire taught part of the course, which means half way towards exams… I have just over 3 weeks before the second essay is due, which means another 2½ weeks of procrastination. After Christmas we begin our projects and that is when the real stress kicks in. This course is very full on but honestly after a year making sandwiches and serving coffee I am so glad to be exercising me brain again.

On the GradMed front, I haven’t heard back from any of my choices. Which I am hoping is a good thing since Warwick has been dishing out rejections so hopefully my application is still being reviewed. So for now at least no news is good news! 

Upcoming Charity Event

This is a small promotional piece for my friend:

There is charity dinner next Saturday if any of you are interested in Oral and Maxillofacial surgery. Nyarko Cleft Care is a small charity founded in 2005 by my friend's mum whose daughter (friend's sister) had cleft lip and palate. She, along with the lead surgeon and President of the International Oral and Maxillofacial Association: Professor Piet Haers and the rest of the team, will be there on the night.

The event is in the London Hilton in Euston on the 23rd or November and starts at 6:30pm. It should be a really good night, lots of food, drink, and dancing. If you have any questions about the project or the event you can leave a comment and I'll pass it along to my friend.

More info and tickets are available on the website.

I'll give a review of the night next week to those unfortunate few that won't be able to make it!

Originality and Critical thinking

The relief of sending off UCAS and butterflies of receiving the first few acknowledgements were sadly short-lived. My MSc has started in earnest, although I am thoroughly enjoying it, the sheer amount of ‘stuff’ threatened to overwhelm me. If it wasn’t for the fact the course is so interesting and encompassed everything I want to do for the rest of my life, I would have succumbed to the pressure. I did not, however, and I am thriving. There are a lot of doctors on my course who assure me the fast pace and vast content of the course is good training for med school. Seriously, if medical school is anything like this MSc I may expire from sheer joy! There is, however, one aspect I have not yet conquered: the essay.

It took me three years to learn how to write an original and critical essay and by the end of my first degree I was scoring in the 80-90s for my essays. I thought I had mastered the art of scientific writing. I was proved wrong. Our first assessment is proving to be my downfall. I have stressed for nearly 3 weeks about it and I am no closer to finishing the bloody introduction, let alone the essay! Here is the problem, I am used to showing my originality and critical thinking by my approach to answering the question. However, the questions posed have all been dissected, thereby taking you by the hand and leading you to a conclusion. How, within 2000 words, am I meant to be critical or original when you are holding me hostage at the teat? Our module leader has explained that it is about the quality of sources used and what we choose to include within the essay that will be assessed, somehow I not convinced. I have a suspicion that there is something hidden that only  the top 1% of the scientific world knows about, an approach or some sort of insight.  Half the question is asking you describe or define something, but what does that really mean? We can’t even use Wikipedia (I know, I know…) because he heavily implied he has read all the relevant pages to ensure he spots anything similar. That's the trouble with a small cohort: the supervisors have far too much time on their hands.

I don’t know, maybe I’m really over thinking this. Although the pressure to score highly is completely intrinsic, I feel the need to validate my decision to do this MSc with a good grade, a grade I know I am capable of getting. Maybe I need to take a step back and strip the question to the bare bones rather than procrastinate by making lists, timetables and action plans. I’ll just get something down, that is comprehensive and concise, rather than try to invent a new branch of science. 

UKCAT and UCAS

You may think that having sat the UKCAT three times before I wouldn’t be anxious or have to worry about it. You would be wrong. I spent the whole of June and July wondering whether I would flop the UKCAT again and ponder on my life choices. However, this year God seemed to take pity on me and I actually can breathe freely now I know I haven’t sabotaged my application with a naff UKCAT score. I did the UKCAT a week before I left for Boston. I had (with varying intensity) been preparing for two months prior. In the end I got:

VR: 570, QR: 660, AR: 770, DA: 900 and SJT: Band 1. That averages out to 725.

I am, needless to say, very happy with my score especially after the initial worry of new question sets (in VR and AR) and a whole new section (STJ, piloted last year). I am actually extremely happy due to the fact I did the wrong version of the test. I misread the SEN info on the website (Irony doesn’t even begin to cover it) and did the standard test when I am more then qualified UKCATSEN well my VR score suffered but glory be to God I pulled it up with the other subsections.

I have had to manage my expectations as far as university choices go. It seems, from stalking forums, that my score is quite average. However, I am still eligible for my first choice Warwick! And so for 2014 entry I will be applying to GEP: Warwick, Bart’s, Southampton and Birmingham.

The UCAS form has been sent off including a new personal statement (there really are not that many ways you can change a statement for the third time). However, I made sure to take my time with it, as I want this to be last time I ever have to spare a passing thought about UCAS. I fully intend to get in next year because I really, really, really, really, rrreeeeeaaalllyy never want to have to go through this process again!

In other related news. My two twin brothers are also applying for university one of them for medicine. They are in their last year of 6^th form so God willing all three of us will be studying in uni at the same time! I feel sorry for my poor beautiful parents who will undoubtedly have to foot the bill for three undergraduate student bums studying for the better part of a decade!

Neuro Motorist!

Today I passed my practical driving test! 

Considering that I arrived from the US a week ago where I did absolutely no driving and became quite accustomed to the wrong side of the road, I am astounded. Added to the fact that it was my first test I am in a state of disbelief, and if I’m honest a bit unprepared for the implications a full drivers license holds.

Now I know it is not uncommon to pass first time, but I am what you may call a ‘(unnecessarily) safe’ or ‘(overly) cautious’ driver so I was not expecting to pass due to either excessive hesitancy or frustrating the hell of the other motorists, especially as I hadn’t had long to practise. To be honest I got extremely lucky with my examiner, test route and day, which were friendly, easy and dry respectively. But when I heard him say "Well you have passed..." I felt manic laughter well up inside me at the pitiful joke he was trying to deliver. I managed to swallow my insanity long enough to confirm I had indeed been granted the right to drive unaccompanied on public roads... Alone.

All in all I passed with only 5 minors, which included driving too slowly beside cyclists (because I didn’t want to alarm them!) while overtaking. I am now facing the reality that I can be unleashed on my own, in a motorised vehicle, amongst other unsuspecting road users. Well, I just need to get a set of P plates, which I will most likely be using for the next 5 years, you know, while I gain confidence and the such.

Vacation

“There are no foreign lands. It is the traveller only who is foreign.” – Robert Louis Stevenson

I am almost certain I am the only one reading this blog; so I won’t make too many apologies for the long absence. The reason for the hiatus is simple: NeuroMedic was in Boston! Throughout the month of August I visited my brother, who has just moved out there for work. So instead of a holiday I was in actual fact there to be his unpaid PA/maid/cook. However, I did all the things expected from a tourist: Harvard Yard, Duck tours, Faneuil Hall etc. as well as furnished a flat and establish a working household (you’re welcome, bro).

Due to the fact that my brother was working Monday to Friday I had to acclimatise myself very quickly to the city. Fortunately it is very well connected and easy to get around so I was able to navigate and entertain myself during the day. Needless to say by the end of the month I was very much at home, which made arriving back in London quite strange. It put me in mind of the quote above, there really are no foreign lands, which is made all the more apparent when you have to acclimatised to your own home. It did not take too long though once I had gotten over my jet lag I was able to appreciate the wonders of London: driving on the left, gloriously unpleasant faces and of course the correct usage / horrifying abuse of the English language.

Quick word of advice: Do Not under any circumstances connect within the US without at least 3 ½ hours, especially with Delta, it’s a bloody joke and you will miss you’re flight (and may cry). If the only alternative is to ride a donkey to your destination then you may want to consider a non-direct Delta flight. However, be warned: They will lull you into a false sense of security with a painless and pleasant first leg then frustrate the you with incompetent and insultingly slow staff and flights that are cancelled and rescheduled for different terminals of their bloody airport (obviously I have yet to get over my bitterness).

Well it is now September; I am back in the UK and about to embark on a master’s degree. The summer is over and I am preparing to go back into education with I am actually very excited about. The next few weeks are going to be full of DBS checks, occupational health checks and forms… Well, maybe not that excited.

Reflections on rejections

“There's nothing like rejection to make you do an inventory of yourself.” – James Lee Burke

It is a gulling feeling to be told you are just not good enough. To have the door to your dream closed once again. However, it also is a fortifying time where you revaluate your choices and discover more about your motives and what you want out of life.

This will be my forth time applying to medical school. The first of course was in year 13; I was very under prepared and quite unsurprisingly rejected. The second time was at the last year of my neuroscience degree, I was at a better place in terms of maturity and had a clearer picture of where I needed to be. I made it to interviews, but nerves got the better of me and I was again rejected. The third attempt I was determined not to let my nerves or anything else get into my way, unfortunately my focus was more on the interview process than my UKCAT and I got a considerably lower score than I had the previous year, I was rejected before interviews, leaving me with yet another ‘gap’ year.

The part that most upsets/annoys me is the wasted time. There is nothing worse than doing something you know you have no business doing for a prolong amount of time without a clear picture of where you are going to be. The uncertainty and fogginess of the situation is by far the hardest part. I know I will become a doctor. It is just a matter of when. I can’t in all honesty continue on in limbo for many more years. It is ridiculous.

Which is why I'm so glad I'm doing my MSc. Instead of having another year of mind numbing employment, I should enrich my mind and train myself for a lifelong study. So I have decided to view the latest round of rejection as an opportunity to invest in my future and bolster my future prospects.

Neuro Medic

I would never regret the three years I took to do my BSc Neuroscience it was by far one of the most important things I have done thus far. It taught me so much about the area I want to spend the rest of my life in. It also didn’t hurt that I had three years to enjoy the joys of university life at one of the best student universities in the UK. However, it cemented the fact that medicine is for me.

Alas, it seems medicine has not received the memo.

So I am going on to do an MSc in Clinical Neuroscience, after a year out of education I am so happy just to be a student once more. Alongside my masters I will also be tackling UCAS and medical applications for the fourth (Yep, that’s right: the number 4!) time.

The decision to go back into study was not made lightly (£9000 is no joke). However, it is the best option for me as my main aspiration is to become a neurologist, hence this blog’s nifty name. This MSc bridges the gap between lab based sciences and medicine, and means I have the right foundation for further research.

Right that just leaves one more little thing to do: Get into medical school…

You know what they say: 4^th time’s a charm!